- GB-2014-WSA-20811
- Person
- 1625-1686
Fell, John; Bishop of Oxford and Dean of Christ Church, Oxford. Eldest son of Samuel Fell (qv) ; b. 23 Jun 1625 ; educ. Lord Williams’s School, Thame, and Christ Church, Oxford, Canoneer Student 25 May 1637 – expelled by the Parliamentary Visitors 15 May 1648 ; BA 1640 ; MA 1643 ; DD 1660 ; served as Ensign in Royalist garrison, Oxford ; ordained 1647 ; one of the group of clergy who regularly performed Church of England services in Oxford during the Commonwealth ; Canon of Christ Church 27 Jul 1660 – Nov 1660, Dean of Christ Church from 27 Nov 1660 ; Prebendary of Chichester 18 Aug 1660 – res Jan 1661/2 ; Vice-Chancellor, Oxford Univ. 1666-9 ; consecrated Bishop of Oxford 6 Feb 1675/6 ; Chaplain to Charles II ; raised the finance for new buildings at Christ Church, including Tom’s Tower designed by Sir Christopher Wren ; presented valuable type matrices to the University Press 1666 and established the first regular University type foundry 1667 ; author of biographies of Henry Hammond and of Thomas Fuller, and of editions of Suetonius and of Clement ; d.unm. 10 Jul 1686. ODNB.
In 1685 he provided £327 5s 6d out of a total of £527 5s 6d of the cost of purchase, jointly with Richard Hill (elected to Oxford 1640, qv), of certain fee farm rents. These were conveyed on trust to pay £20 to a reader of prayers in some parish church in the city of Oxford, and the residue to the Westminster Students of Christ Church.
According to E.G.W.Bill, Education at Christ Church Oxford 1660-1800, 1988, p.103 n.1, “The Fell and Hill Trust was established in 1685 for the benefit of two Westminster Students. The first appointments were not made until 1714 and the exhibitions were only worth £2-£3 a year”.